Episode 301: Book I Love: Anya Hindmarch
In episode 301 of the My Daily Business Podcast, Fiona talks about the book "If In Doubt, Wash Your Hair" by Anya Hindmarch, the founder of one of the biggest bags and accessories brands in the world. Fiona describes the book as part business, self-help, personal development, and biography that is so wonderfully put together that you just can't help but listen or read. Tune in!
Topics discussed in this episode:
Introduction
Rebranding process
Conclusion
Get in touch with My Daily Business Coach
Resources and Recommendations mentioned in this episode:
Welcome to episode 301 of the My Daily Business Podcast. You may have noticed that we have changed the artwork. We have changed our name. We are going through a slight rebrand, but it has been something that we have been working on. And I say we because my assistant Yricka has been doing so much, but there have been so many other people involved in this. Photographers branding, experts, agencies, graphic designers, and website developers. It's been huge and we've worked with people from Spain through to LA through to Melbourne, Sydney, a whole lot of people, and the Philippines. It's been a big job. We'll be talking a lot more about that on Thursday's episode. If you are interested in branding, and rebranding, why would people do that? Even things like how to brief a graphic designer for any part of your branding. Then definitely make sure you check out Thursday's episode and make sure you hit subscribe so you can get that episode as soon as it hits out.
If you're worried that this podcast is going to change, it's not, we are having the same format, the same episodes, and the same great quality of people that we interview. Don't worry, for a second, nothing is changing with this besides the name and the artwork, but it is the same. I hope you think it's a great podcast. Today it is a quick tip episode and that's where I share a tip tool or tactic that you can implement immediately. And today is a tool and it's something that I have recommended to so many people ever since I encountered it. I also wanted to mention that if you are looking for your first home or you are thinking about making a bit of a bush change, not too much of a bush change because you're still in the suburbs of Melbourne.
We are selling our log cabin home. If you're interested in that, please get in touch with us and we can send you all the links and all the details. It has been a big month. I've also been overseas for a couple of weeks, which was my first trip overseas in years. I have to say, it was just so refreshing and wonderful and I'm so incredibly privileged to be able to do that. Before we get stuck in, I also want to acknowledge the traditional owners and custodians of this beautiful land that has healed me and helped and is just so reviving. And that is the Wurrung and Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation. And I pay my respects to their elders, past, present, and emerging, and acknowledge that sovereignty has never been ceded. Let's get into today's quick tip episode.
As I mentioned, it's a tip, tool, or tactic episode. But today it is a tool. The tool is an incredible book that I read. I listened not that long ago. I have to say I was a little sceptical about whether would this be a decent book. Would it be worth listening to or reading? It has been honest to goodness, one of the best books that I have read in the last five years. That is big because I go through a book a week, if not sometimes more on holidays I had a lot more time. I went through about three books, which are also good. If you ever need a book suggestion, please just send me a DM because I read books all the time, not just business books, self-help books, and fiction, I read a lot of fiction.
I think fiction is a great way of switching off from everything. But this book is non-fiction and it is part, I would say part business, a huge part business, but also part self-help, part personal development, part biography, I mean it's got all the things and it's so wonderfully put together that you just can't help but listen or read. I listened to the book and at the end of it I remember saying to my husband, he was trying to talk to me and I said, "No, sorry, I've got 10 minutes left of this and it's such a good book and I want to listen to it." I sound like a horrible partner. It wasn't super important what he wanted to talk about. He was happy to wait for 10 minutes. But that was the type of, I think I listened to the whole thing in two days or maybe three days because it was just that good.
What is the book called? Who is It By All the Things? The book is called If In Doubt, Wash Your Hair, and it is by Anya Hindmarch. For those who don't know, she is well known around the world as the founder of one of the biggest bags and accessories brands in the world. As somebody myself who has worked in fashion and also worked in head office retail for accessories brands, I had known about Anya Hindmarch. I had friends who had some of her bags. They are very expensive, they're not affordable for the masses. I mean she does have some things that are, but I didn't even think of a human behind that brand.
I'd heard about the brand, I'd even looked at their bags, and I'd looked at buying stuff. I liked that she's into the organization and a lot of her bags will have little like a phone pocket or passport written on the area that you need to put your passport in or your phone or whatever. I always thought they were cool and quirky. She has an amazing style. I saw her name that's why I looked at the book, saw her name, and I thought, “Okay, let's listen to this.” I'm so glad I did because I did not realize that Anya Hindmarch is a mother of five. She had her business for a long time and then sold it and then bought it back. She's so heavily involved with sustainability and fashion and she's doing a lot in that space.
The book goes into detail about how to run a business as a parent, which I think is something that people don't talk about in realistic terms. I know there's a lot out there, but sometimes the stuff that's out there doesn't seem to be written by anyone who has children or who has young children in particular. Her children have now gotten older. I think the youngest is maybe 14 at the time that she wrote this book, which was a couple of years ago now. But, she talks about everything from motherhood guilt through to sugar addiction, through to running a business and having to be there for your staff through to how to keep your marriage going. Like so many elements of it. And she also talks a lot about brand and business and why she has done the things that she's done, why she's done certain marketing campaigns, and why she's passionate about sustainability in fashion.
If you are looking for a book that caters to any of those elements that I've talked about, this one is for you. As I said at the start, I was sceptical, and even when she started speaking, she narrates the book, which is awesome. I hate that I thought this, but I thought, she was like a wealthy woman with heaps of nannies and she's not relatable. And by the end of it, or very early into the book, I thought, she's so relatable. Many things that she talks about, you think, it's like she's reading my mind and I just love her. Her attitude toward business, her attitude towards running a business whilst also raising a family. There were so many actual practical tips and insights, even how to like kids figure out their own Christmas presents there were so many awesome parts that you're like, it's almost as if, and I think I read somewhere where she said, this is why she's written it.
It's almost as if you have this slightly older friend who can give you their perspective from somebody who's got their kids a little bit further along, someone whose business is a lot further along. I think she said that she wrote the book for women who are coming up who are younger than her and that she wants to give actual practical advice to them. She's also obsessed with her label maker. I have an affinity for that because I am also obsessed. And if you're somebody who has gone through our house and is interested in checking out our house, you'll see labels everywhere. The real estate agent said to me, “You like your labels?” I think he said, “You're very organized” or something. I like to put a label on everything. My Dymo label is very important to me.
She also has that and she's into the organization and she talks about everything like how to pack when you're travelling a lot. There are so many tips and insights. Again, the book is called If In Doubt, Wash Your Hair by Anya Hindmarch. I listened to the audible version. I bought the physical version because I wanted to read through it again. And it's just made me I was already interested in her brand, but it's made me interested in everything that they're doing. They are doing so many interesting things, particularly in London. I'm very excited about going and visiting that in a couple of months. And on that note, if you listen to this podcast and you live in London or the US or different parts of Europe, get in touch because I will be coming your way for a few weeks later this year and then hoping to come again after the publication of my second book, which will be sometime next year.
I'd love to meet up with people to get your ideas of where I should visit and what I should do, particularly outside of London. I lived in London for a long time, but there it is. My tip, tool, or tactic today is a tool. It is the book If In Doubt, Wash Your Hair by Anya Hindmarch. We will link to everything in the show notes, which you'll be able to find over at mydailybusiness.com/podcast. And this particular episode is mydailybusiness.com/podcast/301, thank you so much for reading today's episode if you found it useful or if you think somebody else would find that book useful, please feel free to share it with a friend. Thanks for reading.
